


Misconceptions

by CallMeSami



Series: Post-Canon Braceface [3]
Category: Braceface (Cartoon)
Genre: Awkwardness, F/M, False Pregnancy, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Humor, Kissing, Love, Morning After, Morning Cuddles, Morning Kisses, Morning Sickness, Post-Canon, Pregnancy, Romance, Sequel, Series, Unplanned Pregnancy, Wedding Planning, Young Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-03
Updated: 2019-10-29
Packaged: 2020-10-06 18:34:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20511593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CallMeSami/pseuds/CallMeSami
Summary: Adam and Hannah's wedding is right around the corner. But will a big misunderstanding interfere with everything? And what will happen when Adam learns the truth? Adam/Hannah and Sharon/Alden.





	1. Misgivings

**Author's Note:**

> Hello my lovely readers! So glad to have you join me for my newest Braceface fic! It's my 4th Braceface fanfic, but the 3rd in my series of one-shots. This one takes place almost a year after the events in Awkward (which itself is a sequel to The Best Birthday Present Ever). Though it's not really necessary to have read those 2 fics 1st, since I will be explaining everything that happened here (though it would still be awesome if you did check those 2 stories out if you haven't already!). Hope you guys enjoy this fic!
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Braceface or it's characters and am not making any money writing this fic. Only thing I own is the plot.

Adam Spitz looked around and felt a sense of comfort. He was surrounded by family and friends. Adam had announced his engagement to them all just a week ago. Yes, he was now happily engaged to Hannah Corbett. She had been his girlfriend for 4 years. And now she was his fiancee and he would be spending the rest of his life with her. He couldn't be happier. However, he did have 1 thing on his mind that was keeping from enjoying the evening.

He tried not to think about it too much. After all, Sharon is his sister. So that made this all pretty weird to think about. But he couldn't forget that just a week ago, he saw his kid sister leaving her bedroom with her boyfriend, Alden Jones, when they thought they were home alone. Both practically naked. And the open, empty condom wrapper Sharon ended up accidentally dragging into the hallway showed exactly what they were up to in there. Not like it was really hard to figure out anyway.

It shouldn't have surprised him. His baby sister really wasn't a baby anymore. As she pointed out to him, she'd be getting ready to go to college at this time next year and would officially be an adult in another year and 1 month from now. And Sharon and Alden had been together for almost as long as he and Hannah had. So it really shouldn't have been so shocking to him that they took this step in their relationship.

However, Sharon was still his little sister. Therefore, he still felt the need to protect her. He had talked to her right after the incident and she assured him that she was on the pill in addition to using a condom. But he was more concerned about the emotional consequences.

Sharon seemed so sure that Alden wasn't going to break her heart again. Adam couldn't help but remember what she had gone through when Alden dumped her in the beginning of high school. She would barely leave her room for anything except school. And when she did, she would be watching some sad movie in the living room and eating an entire carton of ice cream. All while crying her eyes out. He could only imagine how much more painful another break up would be for Sharon, now that she and Alden were having sex.

Adam looked over to where Sharon was sitting. Alden's seat was right next to hers. They were both looking into each other's eyes, talking and laughing. Neither of them seemed like they had a care in the world. He was sure he and Hannah looked the same way when they were together.

Suddenly, he noticed Sharon getting up and walking off with her friends, Maria Wong and Alyson Malitski. Adam shook his head. He may have been getting married soon, but he still never understood why girls go to the bathroom in groups. Then he realized Alden was sitting there all by himself. He gave Hannah a quick peck on the lips and told her he'd be gone for a minute. She simply nodded and smiled at him. Adam knew Sharon would be embarrassed and probably furious with him if she knew what he was about to do. But as her older brother, he felt he should say something.

Adam approached Alden.

"Hey Alden..." He said, rather nervously.

"Hey Adam." Alden responded with a smile on his face. "Congratulations on your engagement, man. I'm really happy for you!" He then held out his fist for a fist bump, which Adam reciprocated.

"Thank you. Listen, do you think we can talk alone for a minute?"

"Sure..." Alden replied, as he got up from his seat.

Alden was a bit confused. It was the 1st time Adam had ever asked to speak to him alone about anything. In fact, he and Adam really hadn't had very many conversations over the 4 years that they've known each other. Sure, they got along just fine. But for the 1st run of Sharon and Alden's relationship, Adam was usually busy doing his own thing. So whenever Alden was over there, they'd just say hi and bye to each other and that would be it.

Then when Sharon and Alden got back together, it was shortly before Adam went away to Smithdale University. So they really didn't see each other much at all. And even when Adam was home during school breaks or for family gatherings, the most the 2 guys would do is have a quick conversation about sports and that was it. They never discussed anything in their personal lives or even Sharon.

Alden followed Adam. It was Adam's engagement party and the only people who were really there were a few family members, some of Adam and Hannah's Elkford friends and Sharon's closest friends since Adam had known them for so long. The restaurant was nothing fancy. Just some local diner. But it was nice.

Adam lead Alden outdoors.

"So..." Alden said nervously, as he put a hand behind his head. "Why are we outside?"

"I just wanted to talk in a place where we could have some privacy."

Alden looked around and noticed all the people who were walking in and out of the diner.

"Wouldn't we have more privacy in the bathroom?"

Adam scoffed. "Dude, we're not girls. I mean, I know you and Mangled Metal dressed up like girls to try to compete in that girl band contest my sister won 2nd place in, but..."

Alden buried his face in his hands. "Can we never speak of that incident again, please? Besides, that wasn't even my idea. In fact, Brock and Carmen had to drag me into it kicking and screaming."

Adam laughed at the memory of seeing "Mangled Petal" (as they called themselves for the contest) exposed for who they really were on stage as their disguises literally fell off in the middle of their performance. But then he got himself together.

"Ok, sorry. That has nothing to do with what I wanted to talk to you about anyway."

"So what did you want to talk to me about? Is everything ok?" He found himself suddenly feeling very concerned. He hoped nothing was wrong with Sharon. Could there be something she wasn't telling him? Is that what Adam needed to talk to him about? He felt a lump starting to form in his throat.

Adam noticed that Alden was starting to panic.

"Yeah, everything's fine. Don't worry. I just wanted to talk about what I saw last week. You know, when I saw you leaving my sister's room without your shirt..."

Alden started blushing hard. He knew there was no way Adam was gonna believe Sharon's flimsy story about him being there to fix the shower. Alden had asked Sharon about what happened after he left her house when he saw her later that day. But she assured him that she took care of it and he didn't need to worry about what happened.

"So I guess you figured it out, huh?"

"Um, yeah. Sharon isn't exactly the best liar in the world."

"Right..." Alden was still blushing and continued to avoid eye contact.

"Don't worry, I'm not gonna yell at you. Or say anything to any authority figures here. But I do want to talk to you about my sister..."

"What about her?"

"Well, I know you've been together for a couple of years now. But this is actually not the first round of your relationship. You both started dating in junior high..."

"Until I dumped Sharon at the start of high school." Alden finished for him.

"Yeah, exactly."

Alden was having a hard time overcoming his nerves. He was a little intimidated by Adam. He knew he shouldn't be, because Adam was actually one of the nicest guys he knew. And he knew he would never hurt a fly. But he was just so big and was one of the best wrestlers on the wrestling team in high school. Something he was continuing to pursue in college. So he knew Adam could literally crush him if he ever really wanted to.

"Look, you might not have seen how devastated Sharon was over your breakup. But I literally had to live with it. I was there with her through all the tears and depressing chick flicks I just couldn't escape because she'd be watching them right in our living room. Not to mention, she almost gave me a run for my money with the amount of food she was bingeing on for about 2 weeks after your relationship ended."

Adam started to relive some of those memories. He actually started memorizing some of the dialogue from Titanic since Sharon seemed to watch that particular movie everyday for a while. Although he didn't exactly mind when the scene where Jack was drawing Rose would come on. Of course, he was usually met with eye rolls and glares from Sharon whenever he would sit down next to her on the couch just to watch this scene. It probably didn't help that he would steal some of her snacks at the exact same time. Hey, a guy still had to eat!

"Well I mean, I feel bad for putting Sharon through all that. But it's not like the break-up was easy on me either. I couldn't even pick up my guitar for a week and would ditch practice with Mangled Metal as a result. That really got Brock and Carmen pissed, believe me. But it was hard because all of our songs made me think of Sharon. She knew all the words to every single one of them. And I would just look at pictures of the 2 of us together and keep wondering whether I made the right decision."

"And eventually you realized you didn't?" Adam asked while raising an eyebrow.

"Well... yeah..."

"Look, I mainly just want to make sure my sister doesn't get hurt like that again. You know I normally try to stay out of Sharon's business. I know she can take care of herself and she'd probably be really pissed if she knew I was talking to you about this right now. But I still care about her, you know?"

"I totally get it. And I'm serious about Sharon this time. I mean it. I love her. I think I did back then too. But I was confused and scared. It took getting involved with Marlo to make me realize how much I missed being with Sharon. But I think in a way, breaking up was the best thing for us. You know, we built up an amazing friendship during that time. And now she's my girlfriend and 1 of my best friends too. We're closer than ever this time."

"Yeah, about how close you guys have gotten..."

Alden tensed up. Here it was. He was gonna now have a very awkward conversation with his girlfriend's older brother...

"You do know how much of a big deal sex is to a girl like Sharon, right? She's always had this romanticized idea about relationships. Probably because we were so young when our parents divorced and she just always wanted better than that. So she's always held out hope for the perfect relationship for herself. But if she's having sex with you, that means she's really serious about you. And she might even believe you're "the one". So if you break up with her again, it's gonna hurt even more this time. You know, now that she's given herself to you like that."

"I have no intention of breaking up with Sharon. Like I said, I love her. And I take sex seriously too. I wouldn't be sleeping with Sharon if I wasn't just as committed to her as she is to me."

"And what if the condom breaks and you get her pregnant? Will you still be committed to her?"

"Of course. I already told her I'd support whatever decision she makes if that does happen."

"And what if she decided to keep it? Would you be ready to be a father?"

"If I had to be, yes. Look even if I didn't love Sharon, I could never abandon my own child like that. So I'll be there for her if it ever happens. She is on the pill though."

"Which is only 98% effective."

"I know. I'm prepared to deal with the consequences if both methods fail. And I'll never do anything to hurt your sister again. I promise!"

Adam nodded. "Good. Cause if you do, I'm gonna have to kick your ass!" He then smiled at Alden to let him know he was just teasing him. Alden smiled back, but was still a little nervous about that statement. After all, he knew Adam really could kick his ass if he wanted to. He didn't remember Sharon's big brother being this protective during the first run of their relationship. Not even after he broke up with her. He never even said anything after they first got back together. But it looked like finding out that Alden deflowered Sharon changed everything.

The 2 then went back inside the diner and to their table. Adam and Alden sat in the chair next to Hannah and Sharon, respectively.

When Alden got back in his seat, Sharon curiously eyed him.

"Were you talking with Adam?"

"Yeah, I just wanted to congratulate him on his engagement to Hannah."

"You were gone for a pretty long time..."

"Well, we just started talking about sports. You know, things you would find boring." He smiled at her and gave her a peck on her lips.

"Don't worry. Everything's fine."

Sharon nervously smiled back at him. She knew Adam had been concerned about her and Alden ever since he found out they were sleeping together. While she appreciated the fact that her big brother was looking out for her, she was kinda hoping he would just forget about the whole incident. It was embarrassing enough as is. She really hoped he didn't say anything to Alden about it...

Eventually the evening ended and shortly after, summer was over and Sharon and her friends entered their last year of high school. While Sharon was enjoying her senior year, it was a very emotional one for her. She just couldn't believe it was really the last year that she, Alden, Maria, Brock, Connor and Alyson would all be in school together.

After graduation, they would all have 1 last summer to spend together. Then Connor and Alyson were gonna be going to Banting University. Mangled Metal would be in Julliard in New York. Sharon and Maria would also be attending school in New York, but they were going to New York University. She was really worried about her relationship with Alden. While Julliard and NYU were close enough that they could still see each other most of the time, it wasn't gonna be the same as having almost every class with Alden.

She was also worried about her friendship with Connor and Alyson, with them going to school so far away from her. Especially Connor, because they had been best friends since they were in diapers. She couldn't imagine not having him in her life. Would the distance end their friendship?

Then there was Maria and Brock. Would their relationship survive them being in separate schools? Sharon sincerely hoped so. They had been on again/off again enough as is. And now that they've finally consummated their relationship during senior prom and Maria trusted Brock again, she hoped they were back together for good this time. If they could survive Brock sleeping with Tess, they should be able to get through anything.

Sharon wasn't too worried about her friendship with Maria since they would be roommates at NYU. But with Maria being a business major and Sharon studying to be a vet, it was unlikely they were gonna be taking a lot of classes together. They both signed up for a few of the same basic classes that all Freshman were required to take for the 1st semester. But as time went on, they would have less of those. And eventually they were both gonna graduate. Would they be going their separate ways after that?

Of course, Sharon had still managed to stay in touch with her former high school mentor, Dion, after he had graduated. Even if she didn't get to see him as much. She was hoping it would be the same deal with the rest of her friends.

She tried to remember how she coped with Adam going off to college. It was hard at first and she had to get used to her big brother not being home all the time. As much as they both always teased each other, she really did miss him. But they talked on the phone and AIM constantly, so that helped. And he would always visit during school breaks.

Of course, that was happening even less ever since he and Hannah had moved into a studio apartment together last year. And now they were gonna get married soon and would continue living in their Toronto apartment. And while Sharon was truly happy for them both and excited to be Hannah's maid of honor, it was just another change she was gonna have to get used to.

Plus, her mom would be marrying David next year and he was gonna move into their house with his twin daughters, Sara and Lara, as soon as Sharon went away to college. Her home was never gonna be the same again.

But since David and the girls hadn't moved in yet, Sharon still had a little more privacy. One weekend when Helen and David had taken an overnight trip up north and Josh was away on a trip with his school's band for the weekend, Sharon had the house to herself once again. So of course she decided to have another "sleepover" with Alden. It was probably the last time they'd be doing this.

Sharon laid in bed with Alden the morning after. She smiled and thought about how she couldn't believe they've made it this far. When they had broken up back in 9th grade, she never thought he'd be her boyfriend this close to graduation. But here she was, waking up next to him in her bed after a night of incredible sex. High school graduation only weeks away. She wished this moment could last forever.

Sharon started to sit up in bed, which must've woken Alden up because he started stirring next to her. She felt a little bad for disturbing him, but knew they both eventually had to get out of bed anyway. After all, there was no telling how soon it would be before her mom got back. Even with her 18th birthday only being a couple of months away, she still wouldn't be able to explain this to her mom!

Alden opened his eyes, looked up at Sharon and smiled. "Hey." He said.

"Hey back." She replied.

"I'm surprised you woke up before me. I mean, you did do more work than me. Being on top and all. And I'm exhausted! Not that I'm complaining. You were amazing."

Sharon smiled and kissed him.

"You were amazing too. And you still did a lot of work, even with me being on top. I'd say we're even."

It had become Sharon's favorite position.

"So listen..." Alden started out as he caressed Sharon's long blonde hair. "I'm working on a new song that I thought of a few notes for last night. Do you want to hear it? I would love to have some input from our assistant manager..."

"Sure." She responded with a smile. She loved when he asked for her opinion on anything Mangled Metal related. She felt like she was contributing to his career. If she wasn't already so determined to become a vet, she might've chosen to major in business right along with Maria and be their assistant manager full-time. Another change she was concerned about. She eventually was gonna have to step down as their assistant and let Maria take over managing the band on her own. She was gonna be way too busy once her own career was established.

Alden jumped out of bed and grabbed his guitar he had brought over with him. As he walked back to the bed, Sharon pulled the sheets up to her bare chest and hugged them to herself. She was feeling a little cold without Alden's warm body right next to her. But seeing him walk back and forth to her bed in the nude made up for it. Sure, she had seen him naked about a million times by now. But she never got tired of it!

Alden sat on Sharon's bed and played her what he had so far.

She stroked his arm and smiled. "I love it so far."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I think it's great."

"Awesome! Do you want to help me write some lyrics? We could work on them together in the shower..." He said seductively, as he put down his guitar and passionately kissed his girlfriend.

She enjoyed getting lost in the moment of the kiss.

"Sounds great!"

She started to get out of bed, but caught a glimpse of the clock on her nightstand. It was after 10 AM! Have they really been in bed for that long?

"Crap!" She exclaimed. "We don't have time to shower together."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah." She replied as she pointed to her clock. "It's after 10! My mom could be home any minute. And if she catches you here, we're both dead!"

"Too bad. I was looking forward to another shower with you. We really don't get very many of those."

"I know. And I promise I'll make it up to you. We will both be away in college dorms after the summer."

"Yeah, but we won't even be in the same school. Let alone the same dorm."

"True. But Maria will be my roommate and Brock will be yours. And since Maria and Brock are gonna want to spend some nights together, I'm sure we can work out an arrangement where she can sleep in your dorm while you stay in ours. Or vice versa. Based on what Adam and Dion have told me about dorms, the schools really don't check up on that kind of thing. That's the nice thing about being an adult."

Sharon started to get dressed but was stopped by Alden, who pulled her in for a hug. He loved feeling her naked body against his. Sure, he felt it every time they had sex. But there was something about this particular moment that felt really special to him.

"Alden!" She said as she giggled and tried to pull away from him. "Seriously! I need to get dressed!"

Alden also laughed and pulled Sharon back into the hug.

"No! I don't want you to get dressed ever again! I enjoy staring at your beautiful naked body way too much!"

"Well unless you want me arrested for indecent exposure, you're gonna have to let me." She then pulled away from him and threw on a baby blue tank top with matching sweatpants. Alden put the clothes he wore the night before back on. They both kissed 1 last time before leaving Sharon's room.

When they got downstairs to the living room, they were surprised to see Adam sitting on the couch and watching tv. Sharon had totally forgotten that he and Hannah were coming in from Toronto for the next couple of weeks to plan their wedding in Elkford. The one she was going to be Hannah's maid of honor for. And today happened to be their arrival date.

Great, another awkward moment with Adam catching them after one of their sleepovers. At least she and Alden had more clothes on this time.

"Adam... hey..." Sharon nervously said, as Alden walked over with her.

"Hey Sharon... and Alden..." Adam said while raising an eyebrow.

"Hey Adam..." Alden timidly responded as he put a hand behind his head. "I was... actually about to leave..."

"Good idea." Adam replied. "I think mom is due back any second..."

Alden gave Sharon a quick peck on her lips and promised to call her later.

Adam gave her a knowing look.

"I was just... doing homework in my room..."

Sharon immediately felt the urge to facepalm after saying that. She wasn't sure why she was trying to hide what she had been doing from Adam. He already knew she and Alden were sexually active. And he was her brother, not a parent.

"Um, yeah. Unless "homework" is your nickname for Alden, I don't think so. You know I'm not stupid, Sharon."

Sharon sighed. "Fine, you caught us. Again! Let's just get the awkward sex talk over with."

Adam shook his head. "I don't think I need to give you "The Talk" again. You are almost 18. And from everything you said last time we talked about this, you seem like you've got it all covered. But I do have some advice for you..."

"Yeah?"

"So I don't know how often Loverboy spends the night here. But when he does, you better make sure he's out of here before mom gets home. Try to wake up earlier. I could've just as easily been her, you know. And she has been known to arrive early. Remember the house party we threw back when I was still in high school?"

Sharon took a deep breath as she thought about this. "I know we're taking a risk every time we have sex in this house. Neither of us get much privacy in our houses. We don't have the luxury you and Hannah did where her parents were away a lot. And I just really wanted to do it in a bed instead of his car for a change. I mean, car sex can be great. But it is so not romantic! And there's barely any room in there to move around and feel the kind of pleasure..."

"ENOUGH!" Adam shouted as he put his hands over his ears. "I REALLY don't want to know all those details, Sharon!"

Sharon blushed as she realized this was her brother she was talking to. "Right, sorry..."

"Anyway, Hannah should be here soon. She's gonna want to go over plans for the wedding with you. But she said her stomach was feeling a little off, so she took a quick trip to the drug store for some antacids and crackers."

"Oh, I hope she's ok."

"I'm sure she's fine. She's just a little stressed out with our wedding being only 2 weeks away. And she did just finish up another semester in college where she had a lot of coursework."

Sharon nodded. "Ok, well I'm just gonna grab a quick shower and change before she gets here."

After Sharon had showered, she changed into a white cap-sleeved t-shirt with a blue butterfly on the front and a baby blue ruffled miniskirt. She then met Hannah downstairs. Hannah's long dark hair was down and she was wearing a yellow tank top and long denim skirt.

"Hey Hannah." Sharon greeted her. "You excited about the big day?"

"Yeah..." Hannah said while sounding distant. She didn't seem especially excited for a bride-to-be. But Sharon figured it probably had to do with her not feeling well. She knew how much Hannah loved her brother, so there was no way she could be having second thoughts. Right?

"I can't wait to try on my dress later! You are still going with the same dresses for the bridesmaids, right?"

The dresses Hannah picked out were gorgeous. They were yellow, spaghetti strapped and ruffled at the bottom. But of course, she remembered how her Aunt Judy had originally picked out nice dresses for her wedding and then swapped them out for hideous dresses at the last minute.

"Of course. You helped pick them out, so there's no way I'm gonna switch them out on you now."

"That's good." She responded, but then noticed just how distracted Hannah seemed.

"Are you ok?" The blonde girl asked the brunette.

"Yeah, I just woke up not feeling that great. Actually, I'm gonna use the bathroom for a few minutes. I'll continue to discuss wedding plans with you in a bit."

"Ok."Sharon noticed Hannah bring her shopping bag into the bathroom with her, but didn't think much of it. Before she knew it, Hannah had been in the bathroom for at least 15 minutes. She decided to check on her.

"Hannah?" The blonde teen asked as she knocked on the door. "You ok in there?"

"Yeah." She heard Hannah respond through the door. But it sounded like she was crying.

"Are you sure? You don't really sound like it."

"No." She heard Hannah sigh. Suddenly, she emerged from the bathroom. It was confirmed that she'd been crying because her eyes were red.

"What's wrong?" Sharon asked. Her voice filled with concern.

"This!" She held out something to show Sharon. Sharon knew what it was right away. A home pregnancy test. And it was the digital readout kind with the word "Pregnant" spelled out right on the window.

"Oh my God..." Sharon whispered. "You're..."

"I think so. I'm several weeks late and I've been feeling sick every morning. At first, I thought it was just all the stress from planning out a wedding. But then when I noticed my appetite changing, I suspected it was something more."

"Have you told Adam you might be...?"

"No. And I'm really scared of how he's going to take it. I mean, neither of us are ready for a child. Even though we are gonna be married soon, we both still have another year of college left. We don't have a lot of money. And to top it all off, the studio apartment we live in is crowded enough with just the 2 of us! A baby really doesn't fit into our plans!" Hannah was still crying.

"And you guys don't use anything?" Sharon felt a little uncomfortable asking about this. After all, Adam was her brother.

"Adam didn't want to use condoms anymore after we got engaged. And I was on the pill, so we didn't think we needed to. But during the last few months, I've been so distracted with trying to plan this wedding on top of finishing up coursework and studying for finals. So I think I got distracted and missed a few pills in the process."

"Well, maybe you should have a doctor give you a blood test. You know, just to make sure you didn't get a false positive. I think there's a walk-in clinic around here that can do that for you if you wanted to go right now. I'll go with you."

"Thanks. We'll go soon. Just give me a minute to collect myself. Why don't you talk to me about what's going on in your life? I could use the distraction."

So Sharon started talking to Hannah about how she was gonna be graduating high school shortly after their wedding and how she was worried about losing all her friends once they all went to different colleges. And about how she was concerned over her relationship with Alden surviving the change. Eventually, Hannah calmed down and Sharon was the one who was crying.

"God, this is ridiculous!" She said while sobbing. "You're the one who's getting married. You're the one who might be pregnant. And yet, I'm the one who's crying now!"

"Hey, I understand." Hannah said as she rubbed Sharon's back. You're going to have a lot of changes occur in your life too. I know change can be hard."

Just then, Adam came upstairs from his bedroom that he was staying in while he was in town and saw Sharon crying.

"Is this about graduation again?" Every time he spoke with Sharon on the phone lately, she would bring up graduation and start crying over it. She was more emotional than usual lately.

"Yeah." She sniffled in response. "Plus, my big brother's getting married too, you know. And..." Sharon then ran over to Adam and hugged him. "Have I told you how happy I am for the 2 of you?"

"Yeah..." He responded, while eyeing his little sister suspiciously.

"Come on, Sharon." Hannah told her. "We don't want to be late for the dress fitting."

"Right." Sharon responded.

"See you later, Adam!" His sister called as she ran out the door.

Hannah kissed Adam on the lips before she followed Sharon out.

Right after both girls left, Adam then noticed something on the coffee table in the living room. He squatted down to get a closer look at it. Yup, there was no mistake about it. That was a home pregnancy test. And it had the word "Pregnant" spelled out in writing. No wonder Sharon had been such a basket case lately! It was all those pregnancy hormones. Plus, she was only 17 and probably scared. How was she gonna handle this? Adam suddenly felt extremely concerned about his kid sister.


	2. Miscommunication

The clinic did a blood test on Hannah and confirmed the pregnancy. After they left the clinic, the 2 girls sat in Hannah's car for a bit. Sharon squeezed Hannah's hand as they sat in silence for a few minutes. Finally, Hannah spoke up.

"Listen, Sharon. Would you mind not saying anything to Adam? I know he's your brother, but I'd like to keep this between the 2 of us for now. I'll tell Adam on my own when I'm ready."

"Your secret is safe with me. As your friend, maid of honor and soon to be sister-in-law, I promise not to breathe a word to anyone else."

"Thanks Sharon."

"So do you want to keep the baby?"

Hannah nodded. "I do. But I don't know if Adam is going to feel the same way. I don't think he's ready to be a dad. He's only 21. We both are."

Sharon gave Hannah a small smile. "Look, I've known Adam my whole life. He may not be ready now, but he'll get ready if he has to. He's not the type of guy who would just abandon his own child. And I also know he's absolutely crazy about you. So he'll be there for you and the baby. I know he will."

"I just don't want to stress him out right now. I mean, planning a wedding is stressful enough as is. And we're both going to need full-time jobs in order to support the baby, all while still continuing our both have dreams we're trying to fulfill. And I'm barely making anything as a waitress at the diner I work at! I'm only part-time, you know."

"Well, I'm sure you can still do everything you want while taking care of your baby. But I think you are gonna have to tell him eventually. It is gonna become obvious after a while."

"I know. And I will. Just give me time. Right now, I want to focus on wedding plans. You can help me do that, right?"

"Of course! What are maids of honor for?"

Both girls smiled at each other before Hannah drove off to their dress fitting.

The following weekend was Adam's bachelor party and all he could think about was his baby sister being pregnant. He tried to put it out of his mind and just enjoy the party while he drank his beer. His thoughts were soon interrupted by his dad, Richard Spitz, patting him on the back.

"Can't believe my oldest is gonna be married soon! You kids are growing up so fast..."

"Yeah..."

"A little too fast in Sharon's case." Adam thought to himself. He knew their dad was gonna be upset when he found out about it. Sure, he was known for being the cool and laid back parent while their mother was usually the stricter one. But Richard had been known to put his foot down on certain issues. And this was exactly the sort of thing both parents would come together on.

"So how's Toronto treating you?"

"Not bad. I am looking for a full-time job to help pay for our apartment. You know, instead of all these temp jobs I keep landing. It's getting hard on just Hannah's job alone. I recently had an interview with this store at the Galleria Mall called The Penalty Box and it seemed to go well. It's a sporting goods store, which is perfect for me. Though if I get it, I'm a little hesitant about accepting. I heard the manager is a total hardass who makes his employees sit in an actual penalty box if they break one of his arbitrary rules. Which I hear he has a lot of, by the way. And I think I've even seen employees doing push-ups in there."

Richard scratched his head. "That sounds pretty... intense. I did visit the Galleria Mall when my band played Toronto a few years ago though. Very nice place. Are there any other stores there you might be interested in working at?"

"Yeah, I've filled out applications with a few other places there. You know, every time I go to fill out an application at the mall, there's this kid I keep running into who's always filling out one right beside me. I swear, I've seen him work just about everywhere in that mall. I wonder what the deal with that is..."

Richard shrugged. "Well, best of luck to you Adam. I'm sure you'll find employment soon. And Hannah's a great girl. So I'm sure you'll have a long and happy marriage with her."

Adam smiled as he watched his dad walk off. Just as he started to forget all about Sharon, he happened to spot Alden talking to Brock. He walked over to Alden, pulled him by his arm and led him outside.

"I need to talk to you!" Was all Adam said.

Alden sighed as soon as they were outside the bar. He had a feeling he knew what this was about. After all, Adam did catch him and Sharon leaving her room last week. He knew they spent the night together again. He probably wanted to give him some big lecture about how they needed to be a lot smarter about making sure they didn't get caught.

"So has Sharon talked to you yet?" Adam asked.

"Um... yeah? I mean, we talk every day. Why?"

"Well, has she told you anything important?"

Alden started to think. "Um... not really. She has been a little more distracted lately. You know, being Hannah's maid of honor and all. But I'm just glad she's got something to take her mind off going away to college next year. You know how upset she gets every time she thinks about that."

Adam sighed. "Yeah, well there's a reason she might be more upset than usual lately. And why she's so distracted. I think it's about more than just the wedding and college..."

"What do you mean? Is she ok?" Alden asked, sounding concerned.

Adam sighed again, wondering whether he was doing the right thing by telling Alden about this when Sharon clearly hadn't said anything to him herself. But he did want to make sure his sister's boyfriend would be there for her when he found out. And figured he was more likely to be supportive if he wasn't blindsided by this news.

"Look... Sharon left her pregnancy test in the living room last week without realizing it. So she never meant for me to see it. But I did. And it was positive..."

"WHAT?" Alden shouted in shock. "You're telling me I got Sharon pregnant?"

"Shh!" Adam shushed him.

Alden timidly lowered his voice. "Are you sure you read it right?"

"It spelled out the word "pregnant" in black letters. There really is no way to misinterpret that."

"But... she hasn't said anything to me! Why wouldn't she tell me if she's pregnant?" Panic was clearly rising in Alden's voice.

"She's probably afraid of how you're going to react. So she's putting off telling you."

"But I told her I'd be there for her if she got pregnant. And not just for her, but our baby too! I want to be there for her and the baby! So why won't she tell me she's pregnant with my child!"

Alden was now yelling and really starting to freak out. Adam noticed a bunch of people were stopping and staring at them. Good thing everyone they knew personally was still inside the bar. Adam grabbed Alden's shoulder.

"Get yourself together, dude! People are staring."

Alden took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"I still don't understand why she thinks she can't talk to me about it. After everything I've told her."

"Well, pregnant women get very moody. If you thought girls were bad during their time of the month... well... let's just say that moodiness gets cranked up to about 11 when they're having a baby."

"I grew up with 3 sisters. And sometimes they would all be on their cycles at the same time. I can handle the mood swings. It's the being a dad part I'm worried about. I'll get ready for it, because I have to. But I'm only 18. And Sharon and I are supposed to be at college in New York next year. Who knows if that's even possible now? This is gonna screw up everything for both of us!"

Alden's anxiety continued to grow. "Oh man! My parents are going to kill me! I think I need a drink..."

"I feel for you, man. Seriously. And if you were just 1 year older, I'd buy you a beer right now."

"I think I'm gonna need something stronger than a beer..."

"Well, I wish I could help you out there. But they check ID at this bar. And I don't want to spend the night of my bachelor party in jail for providing a minor with alcohol."

"I just don't understand how this could've happened. We use condoms almost every time."

"ALMOST EVERY TIME?" Now Adam was the one yelling. "You don't even use a condom every single time? You're both still in high school! Why would either of you want to risk a pregnancy?"

"She's on the pill, remember?" Alden said as he jumped back a bit. "You said yourself it's 98% effective. With those odds, we should've been fine!"

"98% isn't the same as 100%. Are you sure she didn't miss any pills? Are you always with her when she takes them?"

"Well... no." Alden admitted. "But this is Sharon we're talking about! You know she's always on top of things like this! I think she even has an alarm set to when she's supposed to take each pill every day."

"Well, it doesn't really matter why it failed. Does it? The point is, your girlfriend's pregnant and she needs you now more than ever."

Alden nodded. "You're right."

"Just promise me you'll be there for Sharon throughout her pregnancy, ok? And help her raise the child if she wants to keep it. Also, try not to freak out too much when she does break it to you. She'll be freaked out enough herself and doesn't need the added stress while she's pregnant."

"Don't worry. I promise to support Sharon, no matter what. I just wish she would've told me before she even took the test. We could've taken it together and I could've been there for her the moment she found out."

After that, Adam went back into the bar and Alden decided to get in his car. He just wanted to drive around and do some thinking. There were only 2 occasions where he and Sharon didn't use a condom. One time they both just wanted to know how it felt without one and figured their chances of getting pregnant were low, with Sharon being on the pill and everything. And then there was a time after that when they both just got really caught up in the moment and forgot to put one on. But again, neither of them were too worried because they assumed they were safe with the pill. Both those instances were pretty recent. Could one of those times have led to the conception of their child?

He just kept driving until he felt tired and went home. He really hoped Sharon would call him up and tell him she wanted to talk to him soon. They both needed to discuss where they would go from here.

The next day, Alden met his best friend, Brock Leighton, in his garage for practice with Mangled Metal. They were waiting for their other band member, Carmen Zola, and manager, Maria to show.

Brock approached Alden with an annoyed look on his face.

"What was up with you disappearing from the bar like that, man? You were supposed to drive me and Connor home!"

"Oh man! Brock, I'm so sorry!" Alden apologized. "I totally forgot! How did you guys end up getting home?"

"Adam gave us a ride. But it's not like you to ditch your friends like that, man. Why did you do that?"

"I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking. I just found out some news that I'm still a little freaked about."

"What's wrong?"

Alden sighed. He questioned whether he should be telling Brock about this when Sharon hadn't even broken the news herself yet. But figured he might as well since everyone was most likely gonna know soon anyway.

"Sharon's pregnant."

Brock's eyes widened in shock. "Dude! Are you serious?"

"She hasn't told anyone yet. Not even me. But Adam saw her pregnancy test when she left it behind by accident. It was positive."

"Woah! What are you guys gonna do about it?"

Alden shrugged. "It's up to Sharon, really. But I'll be there for her. No matter what. It is my baby too. I just wish she'd talk to me about it. She's known for a week now and she still hasn't told me. Adam thinks she's of afraid of how I'll react. I guess she's worried I'll break up with her again or something."

"Well, just show her how much you care about her. Take her out tonight and pull out the works. Dinner, a movie, give her flowers. You know, all that mushy stuff chicks love. That should get her to open up to you."

"That's a good idea! If I show Sharon how much she means to me, she'll know I won't abandon her and the baby. Then she'll have to tell me she's pregnant!"

"WHAT?" Maria and Carmen both shouted. Alden and Brock both turned around to see their friends standing behind them.

"How long have you both been standing there?" Alden asked.

"Long enough." Maria answered. "Sharon's pregnant? Why didn't she say anything to me? I'm her best friend!"

"She hasn't even told me yet. The only reason I know is because Adam found her pregnancy test. So he pulled me aside to tell me last night. She didn't tell him either. I don't think she's told anyone."

"Wow! This is huge..." Maria stated.

Maria was still a little hurt that Sharon was keeping this a secret from her. Sharon always told her everything. Even things that were super embarrassing. So why didn't she feel she could tell her she was pregnant? But she realized that Sharon was most likely still in shock over it herself. She probably just needed time to process this life-altering news before sharing it with other people.

"I'm gonna ask her out for tonight and try to get her to talk to me. The most important thing is for her to know she's not alone in this."

"Good idea." Maria said. "It might be hard to get her to agree to go out since she's been preoccupied with Hannah and Adam's wedding. But try to talk her into it anyway. She does need to eat dinner, after all. Especially if she's pregnant."

Sharon walked into her bedroom where Hannah was waiting for her. She handed Hannah a box of crackers and can of Ginger Ale.

"Thank you, Sharon." Hannah said as she took the crackers and Ginger Ale. "Morning sickness is brutal. And it's actually noon now! Whoever came up with the name has clearly never been pregnant before."

"No problem, Hannah. Have you seen a doctor yet?"

"I made an appointment with an OB/GYN, but she can't see me until Adam and I get back from our honeymoon. She did call in a prescription for prenatal vitamins though, so I've started taking those. When I do get in to see her, she's going to do an ultrasound and make sure everything's ok with the baby."

"Adam is gonna want to go to your appointment with you, you know."

"I know. And I'll tell him soon. I promise. I know you hate keeping this from him. But thank you for waiting until I'm ready to talk to him. You're a really good friend."

Just then, Sharon's phone rang. She looked at the caller ID. It was Alden. This was the 3rd time he was calling her. She ignored his other 2 calls because she was busy running errands for Hannah. And she still had to discuss wedding plans with her. But at the same time, she felt bad for ignoring all of Alden's calls. She hesitated.

"Go ahead and answer." Hannah said, as if reading Sharon's mind. "I don't mind."

With that, Sharon answered the call.

"Hey Alden." She spoke into the phone. "What's up?"

"Not much. I was just wondering if you wanted to go out tonight? We can go grab something to eat at Life Cycles. And then maybe go see a movie after that. I know how much you wanted to see that new movie that just came out. You know, the one with Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn."

"The Break-up?"

"Yeah, that's it. I'd like to see it too. I like Jennifer Aniston. She's hot. And there's a scene where she walks around naked in the movie." Suddenly his eyes widened in horror as he realized what he was saying to his girlfriend. "She's not as hot as you are though! Sorry! I didn't mean..."

Sharon laughed. "It's ok, I get it. She is gorgeous. And I love her on Friends. But I'm not sure if I can go out tonight. I still have a lot of work to do for Hannah and..."

"No, it's ok. Go out with Alden."

Sharon pulled her phone away from her ear, put her hand over the mouthpiece and looked up at Hannah.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm really not feeling good. For tonight, I think I'm just gonna go home, do some yoga, take a nice long bubble bath and curl up with a book before going to bed. You go out and have fun."

Sharon got back on the phone and smiled. "Is 7 good?"

Alden smiled too. "Sure. I'll pick you up from your house."

"Ok, see you then."

They both hung up at the same time.

Alden arrived at Sharon's promptly at 7. He held her favorite flowers in 1 hand and a box of chocolates in the other. When Sharon answered the door, it took his breath away. She had on a spaghetti strapped mint green dress with an orange floral print and green flip flops that matched. Nothing fancy, but still nice. She was showing a very subtle amount of cleavage. Her make-up was flawless and her hair was down in her usual style. She always looked gorgeous, but there was just something very special about her tonight. Must've been the glow from being pregnant that everyone always talks about.

"Hey." Alden greeted her. "You look beautiful!"

"Thanks." She responded.

He held out the flowers and candy to her. "I got these for you."

"Oh, thank you!" She said as she accepted them. But then she eyed him suspiciously. He didn't usually go all out like this unless it was a special kind of date. She tried to think. It wasn't her birthday yet. And she knew it definitely wasn't Valentine's Day, given how hot it was tonight. They already had their Senior prom. She didn't forget their anniversary, did she? No, that was still another month away. What was up?

"So, what's the occasion?" She finally asked him.

"Nothing. I just wanted you to know how much you mean to me. And that I'm here for you no matter what. You know that, right?"

"Yeah, of course." The blonde girl answered. She never questioned that and wasn't exactly sure why Alden felt the need to tell her now. She couldn't shake the feeling that something was going on...

"Good." The brunette boy said back. "Now let's get to Life Cycles. The movie starts in an hour and we don't want to be late."

He draped an arm around his girlfriend and led her to his car.

All throughout dinner, Alden kept hugging Sharon, cuddling her, giving her kisses on the cheek and lips. She had to admit, she did enjoy all this affection. He also paid for all the food. She wanted to go halfsies with him like they usually did, but he insisted on paying for it all. She gave up on fighting him after a while.

Alden started talking to her as she enjoyed her veggie burger and fries.

"So, are you having any particular cravings or aversions to any foods?" He then noticed Sharon was giving him a funny look. "Just asking so I know what to get at the movie theater."

"Nope, I'm still eating the way I always have. And still a vegetarian, of course."

"And how's your stomach? Are you feeling nauseous at all?"

Alden wasn't sure exactly how soon morning sickness was supposed to start. But he did hear it wasn't limited to just mornings.

"No..." Sharon replied while giving him a weird look. "Why would I be?"

"Um... no reason..."

Sharon couldn't help but wonder why Alden had this sudden interest in her digestive system. Now she knew something was up.

After dinner, they got back in Alden's car. Alden kept the radio off so that it would be easier to talk.

"So, Sharon... you know you can tell me anything, right? No matter how bad you think it might be, I'll never leave you again. I love you and I'm here for you always."

"I know. I love you too."

"So... is there... anything you want to tell me right now?"

Sharon shook her head. "Nope. Nothing I can think of."

Alden sighed. Why wouldn't she tell him about the pregnancy?

At the movie theater, Alden insisted on paying for everything. Both tickets, a jumbo sized popcorn for Sharon and all of her favorite candy. While she appreciated his chivalry, she felt a little guilty. After all, she knew Alden wasn't exactly rich. Even if he was working at his parent's restaurant, Pick-a-Pita, and his Uncle Doug's meatpacking plant. He wasn't full time at either place.

When the movie ended, they got in the car and talked about it a bit on the way home. Once Alden was parked, he tried again to get a confession out of Sharon.

He would normally park somewhere a little more secluded before taking Sharon home so that they could have sex in his car. But he was so stressed out right now, he wasn't so sure he'd be able to perform properly. Plus, he didn't want Sharon to think he was interested in her just for the sex. And there was the safety of their unborn baby to think about too, of course. He knew married couples had sex while pregnant all the time. But he wasn't so sure how safe car sex was. He at least wanted to talk to a doctor before they did it in his car while she was pregnant.

He was even worried going to 2nd base would be an issue because he heard that her breasts might be sore. He certainly didn't want to cause Sharon any pain or discomfort.

He grabbed Sharon's hand. "So are you sure there's nothing you need to talk to me about?"

"Like what?"

"Oh, I don't know. Anything important I should know?"

"No, I really can't think of anything."

Alden sighed once again before he gave his blonde girlfriend another kiss.

"Ok, well I'll call you in the morning. I love you."

"I love you too." She said as she got out of his car and walked over to her front door.

As Sharon watched Alden drive off, something occurred to her. They didn't have sex tonight! He didn't even try to. It wasn't like she ever turned him down anyway. Well, except when she was on her period. But other than that...

And he didn't pull her panties off to perform other sexual acts with her! She was wearing a dress, so he had the perfect opportunity. He didn't even try to get to 2nd base with her! She was showing just enough cleavage that he should've been tempted. Although that wasn't usually a factor anyway. He always wanted to touch her boobs. She wondered what was going on with Alden tonight...

When she walked into her house, she passed Adam as he was leaving the kitchen. He was eating a giant sandwich he made for himself.

"Hey Sharon." He greeted his sister. "How was your date with Alden?"

"Fine. The movie was good. Alden was acting really weird though. He kept asking me if there was anything I needed to tell him."

"And did you? You know, tell him the important thing you really should tell him?"

"No, because there's nothing to tell..."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes!" She cried. "God, has everybody gone insane and not bothered to tell me?"

The teenage girl huffed and went straight upstairs to her room. Adam sighed as he watched his little sister storm off. He wished she would talk to somebody about being pregnant. He hated to think about her going through this all by herself. And she shouldn't have to, since she had a ton of people who would be supportive of her. Did she even realize that? Adam scratched his head as he went back to the kitchen to look for more food.

That Monday, Alden picked Sharon up from her house to drive her to school. When she got to his car, she was on her phone and seemed more than a little distressed. Must be another mood swing.

"Great! They put me on hold again!" Sharon grumbled.

"Is everything ok?" Alden asked her.

"No!" She shouted without even realizing or meaning to.

"What's wrong?" Alden asked as he put his hand on her shoulder.

"The salon Hannah and all of us bridesmaids are supposed to get our hair and nails done at the morning of the wedding accidentally double booked our appointment. I've been on the phone with them all morning and keep getting put on hold! And I've spoken with about 3 different people so far who have all told me different things!"

Alden sighed as he pulled out of Sharon's driveway. He was very concerned about how frustrated she was allowing herself to get over this. He knew stress wasn't good for the baby.

Sharon stayed on the phone the entire way to school and continued to talk on it as the entered the building until Alden said something.

"Um, Sharon?" He started out. "We have to go to homeroom now. It's with Mr. Melamud and you know how strict he is. You should get off the phone before he gives you a detention."

Sharon shook her head, groaned and angrily ended the call.

"I can't believe this!" The blonde teenager yelled. "All morning and the issue still hasn't been resolved! How can they screw up an appointment that's set for the day of the wedding?"

Alden put an arm around Sharon and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm sorry, Sharon. But try not to let yourself get so worked up over it, ok?"

"How can I not? Hannah is counting on me! I can't let anything go wrong! It's my duty as her maid of honor to make sure this entire wedding goes off without a single hitch!"

Alden continued to worry about the well-being of Sharon and their baby.

"Well you should really be trying to avoid getting stressed out right now. All this stress isn't good for you and..." Alden stopped himself as he realized what he almost blurted out.

"For me and who?" Sharon asked. She folded her arms across her chest and raised an eyebrow.

"You and... Hannah." Alden quickly covered up. "I mean, it's your job as Hannah's maid of honor to keep her calm. Right? But how can she stay calm if you aren't?"

Sharon sighed. "I just hope this can be settled soon. I mean, it was their mistake! Not ours! It's not our fault they gave someone else's appointment time to us! They should try to still squeeze us in for that morning."

"I'm sure it'll all work out." Alden said as he helped Sharon get her backpack and books into her locker. He then swung an arm over her shoulder.

"Come on, let's get to class." He said with a smile on his face. But on the inside, he was really worried about how emotional Sharon was. And the fact that she still hasn't mentioned her pregnancy to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh man! Poor Alden. All he wants is to be there for Sharon and his "baby" and he believes she's shutting him out. He's trying so hard to get her to let him in by being such an amazing boyfriend. When will he figure out the truth? And how will Adam react when he finds out he's actually the one who's going to be a father? Keep reading!


	3. Misguided

Later that day in the cafeteria, Sharon was back on the phone. She had given up on trying to get the salon that double booked their appointment to compensate for their error. She was now calling up different salons to see if they could take them the morning of Hannah's wedding. But she was having no luck getting an appointment so far. It was hard finding anyone with an opening to accommodate that many people in less than a week.

Alden, Maria, Brock, Connor and Alyson were sitting at the table with Sharon. She had not looked up at any of them once while she was on the phone. She would never normally ignore her friends like that, but was way too preoccupied to even think about socializing right now.

Sharon sighed and hung up her phone.

"I don't think I'm gonna get anywhere right now. I'm just gonna go to study hall. See you guys later."

Sharon started to walk away from their table with her tray until Alden called out to her.

"Wait!" He cried out.

"Yes?" The blonde replied as she turned her head.

"You barely ate anything..."

"I'm ok. I'm just not that hungry right now. I have too much on my mind."

"But..." Alden wanted to tell her she shouldn't be skipping any meals now that she's eating for two. But how could he do that without telling her he knows she's pregnant? He was still really hoping she would tell him on her own.

"Nothing..." He sighed and went back to eating his pizza.

Sharon gave him a look, but then just sighed and walked off to study hall.

Alden gazed after Sharon until she was out of sight and then dropped his pizza onto his plate. Now HE wasn't hungry!

"Don't worry, dude." Brock reassured him. "She'll be fine. I'm sure she'll eat as soon as she gets home."

"I'm not so sure. She's so obsessed with her broher's wedding right now. And she's so upset about everything that isn't going right. I'm just worried about what all this stress is gonna do."

"And she still hasn't told you..."

"No! And we are in school now. So let's keep this on the DL, ok?"

"Keep what on the DL?" Connor asked suspiciously.

"Yeah, what's going on?" Alyson also asked, equally curious.

"Nothing!" Alden and Brock both shouted in unison.

"Nice going, guys!" Maria sarcastically stated while rolling her eyes. "Why not just put it up on a billboard so that the whole world can know about it?"

"I think I'll just go join Sharon in study hall. I'm not really hungry anymore either." He then walked away with his tray.

"Later!" he called out.

Maria glared at Brock. Brock simply shrugged and went back to eating his fries.

Alyson and Connor both shot each other confused looks. They still did not understand what that whole exchange was about.

After school, Mangled Metal met up in Brock's garage for practice. They were gonna play at Hannah and Adam's wedding.

Brock and Carmen were waiting on Alden. Maria was there to help them with song selection too. Just then, Sharon came running into the garage with a big smile on her face.

"Hey guys!" She exclaimed with glee. "I'm here to help out with choosing songs to play for the wedding."

"I didn't think we'd see you here today. I thought you were busy trying to find another salon for the morning of the wedding?" Maria inquired.

"Already taken care of! I just finished scheduling an appointment with one that's even closer to the church then the last place was!"

"Well, that's great! But are you sure you're up to helping us with the song choices? I know you still have a lot on your plate..." Maria started to look down at her best friend's stomach but then quickly looked back up so that her friend wouldn't realize she knew anything.

"Well, this is part of the wedding planning process. So I'm definitely willing to spend a couple of hours helping here. And I am still your assistant manager too. Not ready to let go of that position just yet."

"Well... all right. I mean, as long as you're sure you're up to helping us."

"It's the set list for my big brother's wedding! Of course I want to help here. Wouldn't you want to help out if this was for your sister's wedding?"

Maria nodded. "Yeah, I would."

"Thought so. So let's get set up! Alden should be here soon."

"Are you sure you're ok?" The raven-haired girl asked her best friend.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

"Well, I don't know. Is there anything you want to talk about?" She then leaned into Sharon's ear and whispered. "We still have time before practice. So if you want, you can talk to me in private if you need to."

"I appreciate the offer, but there's nothing to talk about. Everything is fine."

The blonde teen sighed. Why did everyone suddenly seem to think she had some huge secret she needed to tell them? What was going on?

Just then, Alden arrived with his guitar. Sharon smiled. Not only was she happy to see Alden, but she was saved from having to answer Maria's questions that she didn't know the answers to! Of course, Alden had been no better with that himself lately. Sharon greeted Alden with a kiss.

As they were getting their equipment ready, Carmen suggested moving the amp to a more convenient spot.

"I'll help!" Sharon jumped up and volunteered. She immediately started lifting the amp.

Alden's jaw dropped in horror. He couldn't believe it! That amp had to weigh more than Sharon did! Why would she put their unborn baby at risk like that?

"No!" Alden cried out. He ran over to the amp and grabbed it in place of Sharon. "Let me handle this!"

"Help me out here guys!" He said to his bandmates through gritted teeth.

Carmen, Brock and even Maria rushed over to help Alden with the amp.

"But guys..." Sharon started to protest.

"Don't worry about it, Spitz. Just sit down and relax. We all know you've had a very hard day and we don't want you to push yourself."

Sharon sighed. Why wouldn't they let her help them with moving the amp? She knew she wasn't as strong as all of them were (especially jock of the year, Maria), but it's not like she was totally feeble either. She just wished everyone around her would stop acting crazy and simply tell her what was going on!

That Saturday was the rehearsal dinner and there was still so much work to do on Sharon's end before the Big Day tomorrow. Alden was on the phone with Brock that morning.

"I can't believe Sharon still hasn't said anything to me!" Alden said with a sigh. "Two weeks and not one word! I don't understand why she doesn't feel she can talk to me about this."

"I don't know what to tell you, dude." Brock said as he shrugged. "Just continue to wait it out until she's ready to deliver the news, I guess."

"Well, I have a plan that I think might get Sharon to open up. I know it might sound extreme. But considering our situation, I think now is the right time for it."

"What is it, dude?"

"Promise not to freak out?"

"I promise!"

"Ok." Alden took a deep breath before revealing his master plan to his best friend. "I'm gonna ask Sharon to marry me..."

"WHAT?" Brock exclaimed.

"So much for not freaking out!"

"I'm sorry. It's just... didn't you guys already have a plan regarding that? And it involved both of you finishing school first?"

"Yeah, but Sharon getting pregnant before high school graduation wasn't part of that plan. And she's trying to become a vet. That could take about a decade of schooling! I don't want to wait that long anymore. I want to be married before the baby is born. So I hope Sharon will say yes."

"Well, if you really feel this is the right thing to do, then I'll support your decision."

"Thanks, man. And if this doesn't show Sharon that I'm not going anywhere, I don't know what will."

Well, good luck dude. And let me know if there's anything I can do to help."

"Ok, thanks bro."

"Anytime."

That night, it was time for the rehearsal dinner at the Spitz house. So far, it was just Adam, Hannah, Sharon, Alden, Brock, Carmen and Maria. And Josh was busy playing the piano. Richard and Lauren were on their way and Helen was picking up David and the twins, since his car was in the shop. Alden, Maria, Brock and Carmen were all helping themselves to some of the wine since no parents were around.

Sharon got her own glass and started pouring some wine for her self. As she was about to raise the glass of wine to her lips, she noticed everyone in the room was giving her a funny look (save for Hannah, who was probably still dealing with morning sickness). Alden even lost all the color in his face. He looked as pale as a ghost! She just didn't get it! When would everybody stop being weird with her?

"What?" She asked in frustration. "You guys are all drinking! Why can't I have some wine too?"

Adam walked over to his younger sister and pulled her by her arm.

"I need to talk to you for a minute, Sharon." He took her into the kitchen.

"What are you doing?" Adam asked his sister.

"Having some wine. Just like all my friends are. Why is it such a big deal to you anyway? It's not like the time I got drunk at dad's concert when I was 13. It's just a tiny bit of wine. I didn't even pour a full glass for myself."

"Yeah, well..." Adam needed to come up with an excuse fast. "You're still underage!"

"Um, hello? So are all my friends! And Maria is three months younger than me! Why is it ok for her to drink and not for me?"

"Because she's not pr..."

Adam watched as Sharon raised an eyebrow at him after he almost let it slip.

"She's not my kid sister. I mean, I know you're almost an adult now. But I'm still your big brother and it's still my job to look out for you."

Sharon sighed. Normally she would hate to have someone control her this much. But this was the rehearsal dinner for Adam's wedding. So she decided it would be best to respect his wishes.

"Ok, I won't drink if it means that much to you. I'll have a soda instead."

"No! Caffeine isn't good for you either."

"Ok, fine. I'll just have water. Are you happy with that?"

"Yes, water is good. You should drink a lot of water. Stay hydrated."

"Whatever." Sharon rolled her eyes as they walked back out to the living room.

She just didn't get it. Adam wasn't even this concerned about what she drank when he lived with her. Why was he being so overprotective now? Besides, she normally had a healthier diet than he did!

When they got back, Alden walked over to Adam and asked if they could talk in the kitchen. Adam agreed to it.

"Hey, thanks for talking Sharon out of drinking, man. I would've done it myself, but I didn't want her to think I was being over-controlling."

"No problem. After all, that is my little niece or nephew she's carrying. I have to make sure she or he stays safe."

Alden smiled at him. "Well, I appreciate that. I really do. So I'm kind of hoping I can get your blessing on something. And Hannah's too."

"What's that?"

"Well, I know this is your wedding and all. And I would never want to steal your thunder. But I do want Sharon to know that I'll always be there for her and our kid. For the rest of my life. And I think the best way to do that is to propose to her. Plus, I think it would be best for our child if we got married before he or she is born. So how do you feel about this? Would you be mad?"

"Mad? Not at all! Do you know how many guys your age would've run off the moment they found out their girlfriend was pregnant? But not only do you want to be there for your girlfriend, you're actually willing to marry her! My sister is really lucky to be with someone like you."

"And you really won't mind if I propose to her tonight?"

Adam put an arm around Alden and smiled. "I'd be happy to share my thunder with you. Welcome to the family!"

Alden laughed. "Well, maybe you should wait for Sharon to accept before you start welcoming me into the Spitz clan. And what about Hannah? I know how much of a big deal a girl's wedding day is to her. I mean, I remember how my sister Lily got during her wedding."

"Hannah will understand when she finds out Sharon's pregnant."

Almost an hour later, Alden found Sharon talking to Hannah.

"Hey, how about we go outside for a few minutes? There's something I want to ask you."

"Oh, well... I don't think I can just leave. I have to help out here and..."

"Please? It won't take very long. I promise."

"Go ahead." Hannah said as she waved Sharon off. "I'll be ok. And there are other people here I want to talk to."

"Well...ok..." Sharon responded as she got up and followed the brunette teenage boy outside.

Alden walked Sharon down a few houses. Then he started talking to her.

"So Sharon..." He started out. "We've been together for three years now. Three and a half if you count the start of our relationship in junior high. You know, before we broke up for a bit. But even broken up, we remained good friends. And now that we're together, you're more than just my girlfriend. You're also one of the best friends I've ever had. I trust you with my life and feel like I can tell you absolutely anything."

He paused to look into Sharon's eyes and get a read on how she was processing this. So far, she was listening and motioned with her hand for him to keep going. She was smiling, which indicated she liked what she was hearing.

"You and I have had our ups and downs throughout the years. But no matter how bad things get, we always make it through. Together. We're always there for each other. And I want to continue to be there for you. For the rest of my life. And I hope you want to continue being there for me for the rest of your life too."

He looked into Sharon's eyes again. She tilted her head and had a look of intrigue on her face. He could tell she was eager to hear what he had to say next. This was his perfect opportunity.

Alden dropped down on one knee and held out a small black box. He then opened the box up, revealing a ring.

"Sharon Spitz, will you marry me?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I'm back with my infamous cliffhangers! So will Sharon say yes to Alden's proposal? And will everyone finally learn the truth about who's really pregnant? Stay tuned for chapter 4!
> 
> I apologize for not updating in the last 2 weeks. Was feeling sick, which made it hard to focus on writing. But now that I'm feeling a little better, I expect to have the next chapter up sooner. Though it will probably be the last one for this story (if not, the chapter after that will). Told you this story would be a short one. But fear not! I have another Braceface fic planned after this one ends. In the meantime, I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter!


	4. Misjudgement

"WHAT?" Sharon cried out in shock. She was completely taken aback by this. She loved Alden and didn't exactly hate the idea of being married to him. In fact, she actually liked the way he went about proposing to her. But why now? It was way too soon for either of them to be thinking about marriage. They were still a week shy of graduating high school.

"Why are you doing this right now?" She continued to question.

"Is it the ring? Do you hate it?" He asked as he slowly started to stand up.

"No, it's not about the ring. But I mean, where is this coming from? We had a plan! We were both going to finish school, start our careers and then think about marriage! Why have you been acting so strange lately anyway?'"

Alden sighed. "Look, I know, ok? You don't have to hide it from me anymore. And... I'm ok with it now that I've had some time to let it sink in. In fact, I'm actually kind of excited." He reached out his hand to touch Sharon's stomach.

Sharon jumped back in shock as she wasn't expecting him to touch her there.

"You know what? What's going on?" She demanded to know.

"You know, about the baby. I know you're pregnant."

"Pregnant?" She repeated, in total disbelief. "What the hell? Why do you think I'm pregnant?"

"It's ok." Alden reassured her as he stroked her arm. "Adam told me. He saw the pregnancy test you left in the living room a couple of weeks ago. And he told me just to make sure I wouldn't bail on you when I found out. But as you can see, I won't! I want to do the right thing and marry you. Now all I need is for you to say yes. Then we can be a little family."

"Adam? Adam told you this? Are you freaking kidding me?"

"Look, I get why you're mad..."

"Mad? No, I'm past mad now. I'm pissed off! And I'm also not pregnant."

"Wait... WHAT?" Alden asked in shock as he stared at the ring he was still holding.

Sharon sighed. She knew this would make things even more awkward than they already were. And she knew she was about to go against Hannah's wishes just now. But still, Alden deserved to know the truth. Besides, it's not like this was Adam. She trusted Alden not to blab this information.

"The test was Hannah's. Not mine." She confessed.

"So Hannah is the one who's pregnant?"

"Yeah..." Then Sharon started thinking. Suddenly everything was starting to make sense.

"Oh my God!" She said, as it all finally dawned on her. "This is why everyone was acting so weird about me wanting to have some wine! Why Adam was lecturing me over it. And why you're suddenly so concerned about the way I'm eating and why you wouldn't let me move band equipment..."

Alden blushed. "Um, yeah. Sorry about that. But in my defense, I meant well."

Sharon put a reassuring hand on her boyfriend's shoulder and smiled. "I know you did. And you've been very sweet too. I'm glad to know you really would stick by my side if I were actually pregnant. And that proposal? It was absolutely perfect! I couldn't have asked for anything better."

"But I'm guessing you're gonna say no? You know, since you're not really pregnant..."

Sharon sighed and gave Alden a half-smile.

"I'm sorry Alden. I love you so much. And I can definitely see myself marrying you someday. And having kids with you. In fact, I can't imagine a future with anybody else. But I'm just not ready to be married yet. I'm 17 and you're 18. I just think we're too young. I want to focus on college and becoming a vet right now. And I think you should also focus on college and your music career with Mangled Metal. I want us both to achieve our dreams."

Alden nodded, but he looked sad.

"I respect your decision." He said dejectedly. "I'm glad I saved the receipt on the ring, at least."

Sharon put and arm around Alden's shoulder.

I still want to be your girlfriend though. And I hope you still want to be my boyfriend, even though I declined your proposal."

Alden put an arm around Sharon's shoulder as well and smiled at her.

"Of course I do. I totally understand why you said no."

"Good." She said as she smiled back.

The two teens kept their arms around each other as they walked back to the dinner.

"Oh and please don't say anything to Adam, ok? Hannah wants to tell him on her own. But she's not ready yet."

"Um... well... ok. He won't hear anything about it from me. But Sharon, you should really let him know that you're not pregnant. He's really worried about you."

"Oh, don't worry. I'll make sure he knows it all right. I can't believe he would tell you before I had a chance to! I mean, I know he turned out to be wrong. But still..."

"Try not to be too mad at your brother. I know it must've been frustrating for you to not understand what was going on. But he was trying to look out for you."

Sharon sighed. "I know you're right. I just wish he would've asked me about it first. It sure would've saved us all a whole lot of drama!"

"Speaking of that, I'm gonna have to clear this up with Maria, Brock and Carmen as well..."

"WHAT?" Sharon shouted. "Why would you tell them I'm pregnant before talking to me about it?"

"I only told Brock." Alden replied meekly. "Maria and Carmen just happened to walk in when I was talking to him and heard everything. And the only reason I told Brock is because you weren't talking to me. I thought you were afraid to and I really needed to talk to someone about this. He's my best friend."

"Ok, I guess I can understand why you needed to talk with your best friend about this. But still, I don't need more people thinking I'm pregnant when I'm not.

"I'll find the three of them and let them know we're not gonna be parents after all."

When they got back to the Spitz house, Sharon pulled Hannah aside.

"Can I talk to you outside for a minute? I need to tell you something."

"Ok, sure." Hannah said as she followed the teenage girl outside.

"Look, I think you need to tell Adam you're pregnant. I know you're worried about his reaction. But... listen. He thinks I'm the one who's pregnant."

"What?" Hannah asked, sounding surprised. "Why would he think that?"

Sharon then explained the entire story to Hannah.

"Oh my God..." Hannah said after Sharon had finished giving her all the details."I'm so sorry Sharon. I never meant to cause this much chaos."

"It's ok. It's not your fault. But you should tell Adam the truth so that this whole thing could be straightened out once and for all. I understand you're scared. But think of it this way. Adam told Alden because he wanted to make sure he wasn't gonna ditch me if I was pregnant. If he wouldn't want anyone treating his sister like that, why would he treat you that way? And if he wanted to make sure his niece or nephew would be taken care of, don't you think he'll want to do everything he can to take care of his own child?"

"You're right." Hannah said with a smile. "I guess I just got freaked with all the changes that are about to occur in my life. And in Adam's. Our whole life as a couple is going to change. Pretty soon, it won't just be the two of us anymore. I think I was just having so much trouble accepting that myself, that I thought Adam might react the same way. But I think maybe I was a bit too quick to assume. I'll go find him now."

"Good." Sharon replied, as she sighed with relief.

As they went back inside, Sharon and Hannah went over to Alden and Adam, respectively.

Sharon couldn't help but notice how sad Alden seemed.

"Are you ok?" She asked him.

"I guess." He replied with a sigh. "I mean, I'm ok with you turning down my proposal. We have plenty of time to get married. It's just... well... I really believed we were going to have a baby. And I started making plans for how we would make things work as a family. And I know it's for the best that you're not pregnant. It would've made things a lot harder for us. But... well... I don't know. I just got excited about the idea of becoming a father. And I guess I'm just disappointed to learn that it's not going to happen."

"Well, not just yet. But it will one day. Look, I understand how you feel. We might not be ready to have kids yet, but you'll make a great father when we finally are. I know you will."

"And I know you'll be a great mom too. But I get it. I'm sure you want to finish vet school before we get married and have kids. And I know it'll take you almost a decade. But it'll be worth the wait, because there's nobody else I would rather spend my life with."

"Well... maybe we don't really have to wait THAT long..."

"Really?"

"Well... I mean, Adam and Hannah are both still in school. And they're about to have a child. If they can make it work somehow, I think we can too. Let's just see how the first couple of years of college go for us. Then maybe we can seriously start to talk about getting married and starting a family together."

Alden smiled at Sharon. "I like the sound of that plan."

"Me too." She agreed.

Hannah took a deep breath as she approached Adam. This was it. The moment she had been so afraid of. She walked over to Adam and just hoped for the best.

"Hey Adam..." She nervously greeted Adam as she walked over to him.

"Hannah, hey!" Adam said as he hugged his fiancee and gave her a peck on the lips. "I feel like I haven't seen you all night. Is everything ok?"

"Um, yeah. I think so. At least, I hope it will be."

Truth is, that was a loaded question. Whether or not everything was ok really depended on how Adam would react to her news.

"Are you still feeling nauseous?"

She nodded her head. "Yeah, I am. And actually there's a reason for that."

She then looked around and saw that more people were arriving to the rehearsal dinner. She knew she couldn't break the news to him in front of all their guests like that. It just wouldn't be right at all.

"Can we go outside for a minute? There's something I really need to talk to you about."

"Yeah, sure."

The soon-to-be married couple both headed out the door together.

Once they were a few inches away from the Spitz house, the 2 stood there in silence for about a minute.

"So... what's up?" Adam inquired.

"Well... there's something I have to tell you. And to be honest, I've known about it for a couple of weeks already. But... I'm just afraid you're gonna freak out..."

Adam wrapped an arm around his soon-to-be wife. "Come on, Han. You know you can tell me anything. After all, I'm about to be your husband. If you can't talk to me, who can you talk to?

Hannah sighed. "Yeah, you're right. I know you're right." She then took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Once she was ready to tell her news, she spoke fast.

"So the pregnancy test you saw wasn't Sharon's. It was mine."

Adam's eyes widened in disbelief.

"I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you right. It sounded like you said..."

"No, you did." Hannah interrupted. "Not only are you gonna be a husband, but you're about to be a father too. So... congratulations?"

Adam sat down on the curb, afraid he might pass out otherwise.

"Ok... you're right. I am kinda freaked out. I thought you were on the pill?" Although he knew very well that the pill was not 100% effective. He just never thought it would fail him.

"I am. Or was, at least. I stopped taking it when I found out I was pregnant. But while I was studying for finals and planning the wedding, I think there were days I forgot to take my pill. I'm really sorry, Adam..."

"It's ok." He reassured her. "I mean... I know you didn't do it on purpose."

There was a few minutes of silence. Finally Hannah sat down next to Adam on the curb and put her arm around him.

"And you're sure it wasn't a false positive?" Adam asked Hannah.

Hannah nodded. "I went to a doctor for a blood test to confirm it. And with the kind of morning sickness I've had, trust me. There's definitely a bun in my oven."

"Wow... this is... a lot to take in. I have to be honest."

Then a thought occurred to him.

"Wait... so if the pregnancy test was yours and not Sharon's then... oh my God! Alden!"

Hannah rubbed Adam's back and nodded. "Yeah, Sharon told me everything. Alden actually popped the question because he believed Sharon was pregnant. Looks like you have some straightening out to do."

When Hannah and Adam got back inside, Adam saw Sharon and Alden talking to each other. They both seemed happy, so it appeared he didn't screw things up too badly. He walked over to the teenage couple.

"Sharon, I owe you a BIG apology! And you too, Alden. Alden, I'm sorry for freaking you out over nothing. And Sharon, I'm sorry for passing the wrong information on to your boyfriend. And for stopping you from drinking wine for no real reason. And for prompting Alden to propose to you out of nowhere. Can you guys forgive me?"

Sharon and Alden both looked at each other and nodded in agreement. "Sure."

Adam sighed in relief. "Thank you!"

But then Sharon sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, Adam. If you thought I was pregnant, don't you think maybe you should've just asked me about it? You know, before you went and told my boyfriend?"

Adam sighed once again. "You're right. I should've talked to you about it before I told Alden anything. I was just afraid he was gonna be like a lot of 18-year-old boys. You know, I thought he might freak out and leave you to deal with this all alone if you caught him by surprise. And I didn't want that to happen to you. But I can see I was wrong about that too." He then smiled at the teen couple.

"At least now I know my kid sister is in good hands."

Sharon walked over to Adam and hugged him. "Thank you for looking out for me. As misguided as it may have been this time, I know it was well-intentioned. And I appreciate you having my back. I really do."

"Anytime, sis."

"So I assume Hannah told you the truth about whose test that actually was?"

"Yeah..."

"And how are you handling the fact that you're gonna be a father? Are you doing ok with it?"

"Not sure how ok I am with it yet, but I think I just need time to process it. The truth is, I'm feeling a little overwhelmed right now. I mean, I'm only 21. What do I know about raising kids? In fact, I really don't know much about kids to begin with..."

"Well, you'll learn. You and Hannah will both learn together. I mean, parenthood doesn't exactly come with a manual. You just both have to help each other learn along the way. And as the aunt, I'll be more than happy to babysit my little niece or nephew whenever I visit you in Toronto."

"I'll definitely take you up on that one. So you really think I'll be a good dad?"

"Well, you've shown just how protective you are of me lately. And I know you're that way with Josh too. And If you're even half that good with own child, you'll be an amazing dad!"

Adam smiled at his sister as he gave her a hug.

"Thank you, Sharon. That was exactly what I needed to hear."

"You're welcome."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the wait for chapter 4 is finally over! I know it took me almost a month, but I finally did it! Once again, I apologize for the wait. Things have been crazy for me lately. But hope everyone liked this chapter (and hope it was worth waiting for!). So, looks like everything has been cleared up! Everyone now knows Sharon isn't pregnant and Hannah is! Next chapter should be the last. It will have Hannah and Adam's wedding, as well as the birth of their baby (and it will be revealed if they're having a girl or a boy!). And I hope to have chapter 5 up much faster!

**Author's Note:**

> So this story was originally intended to be a one-shot. However, I kept coming up with more ideas for it and it started getting super long. Eventually, it got to the point where I believed I was just better off breaking it up into chapters (and it gives me more time to write out the perfect ending! ;)). This one won't be nearly as long as Always Be My Baby. It'll be a short story consisting of about 3 or 4 chapters at most.
> 
> Hope everyone enjoyed the 1st chapter! So Hannah and Adam are set to be married soon. And it looks like they might be having a baby! It's just too bad Adam thinks the pregnancy test is his sister's and doesn't realize it's his fiancee's! So how is he going to handle this misinformation? Keep reading to find out!
> 
> Chapter 2 should be up sometime next week. In the meantime, all feedback is welcome. Any praise, criticism, suggestions, etc. Don't be shy!


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